In the Court of Appeals of the State of Washington
IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON JEFFREY T. PARSONS, MATTHEW ) BALKMAN, GARY DAVID BIESHEIM, ) No. 62152-1-I NEYSA BLACKWELL, THOMAS P. ) CARMODY, KARREN and DANIEL ) DIVISION ONE CAWLFIELD, SCOTT and JULIE ) FOWLER, ROMAN G. GILLULY, ) PUBLISHED OPINION GEORGE GILLULY, JOHN G. and ) SUSAN B. HANSEN, JOHN A. and ) JOYCELYN A. KEEFE, ROBERT E. ) KELLUM, EDWARD MAY, ALLISON S. ) MAY, MARK V. MARTINEZ, TYLER P. ) MICKEY, FARID and SOHEILA ) MOHARJERJASBI, THOMAS C. ) MULLINS, JANE and JEFFREY ) PINNEO, RYAN SCHARNHORST, ) MELODY SCHERTING, SHERI M. ) SLEETH, DEBORAH SMITH, ) DOUGLAS and AMANDA STROMBOM, ) DIANE ZULAS and all others similarly ) situated, ) ) Appellants, ) ) v. ) ) COMCAST of California/Colorado/ ) Washington I, Inc.; COMCAST of ) Washington IV, Inc.; and JOHN DOES ) FILED: June 8, 2009 I-XV, ) Respondents. ) GROSSE, J.—Subject to a few narrow exceptions, the Cable Act expressly preempts state or local action that amounts to rate regulation of basic cable television services, such is the purview of the Federal Communications No. 62152-1-I / 2 Commission (FCC) and local franchising authorities alone. Individual subscribers or groups may only challenge the rates charged to them by a cable service provider before the FCC or before the local franchising authority. Because the plaintiffs here sought relief that necessarily required rate regulation, conduct explicitly proscribed by the Cable Act, summary dismissal of plaintiffs’ state law claims under CR 12(b)(6) was proper. We affirm. FACTS The plaintiffs (collectively Parsons) are Comcast cable television subscribers living in King County’s Greenwood Point and South Cove (annexation area). Following a popular vote, the city of Issaquah annexed those areas effective March 2, 2006.
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